1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to portable cooling systems for use in a racing environment. More particularly, the present invention relates to portable cooling systems that intake ambient air for treatment within a heat exchanger and direct cooled air into a race car driver's helmet or racing suit.
2. Description of the Related Art
The popularity of American stock-car racing, as exemplified by NASCAR for example, continues to increase. Highly sophisticated race-cars with high performance engines developing several hundred horsepower at engine speeds approaching ten-thousand RPM are ubiquitous, both I asphalt racing and the much-more common phenomena of dirt tract stock car racing. Obviously such engines develop considerable heat. The interior of modern racecars can reach temperatures over 120 degrees F. Where speed is at a premium, creature comforts for the driver are notably absent. Racecars do not include air conditioners, or other common automotive creature comforts, which are regarded by professional race teams as energy wasting frills. During a hot Sunday afternoon NASCAR race, involving hundreds of high speed laps over an asphalt race track, car drivers are subject to demanding physical requirements, including the prolonged exposure to potentially debilitating heat.
The avoidance of fatigue, and the necessity to keep the drivers “sharp” cannot be overemphasized. With crowded tracks, heavy traffic, and demanding speeds winning drivers must maintain their concentration and physical dexterity. It is well recognized that drivers subject to long periods of heat, particularly during hot, summer afternoon racing, are subject to deteriorating reflexes, and impaired concentration. Driver fatigue and heat exhaustion contribute to errors in judgment that are especially critical during long races at high speeds in hot summer weather. Although driver's are provided with various safety measures, such as protective suits and helmets, heat dissipation has been only marginally addressed.
Prior attempts at cooling racecar drivers include cooling containers placed within the racecar. Frozen gel coolant within the containers provides cooling. An air inlet vented to the racecar exterior inputs pressurized air that is cooled via heat exchange. An outlet communicates through a hose to the helmet. Cooled air is reduced in temperature about twenty degrees. Known devices of this type suffer from several disadvantages.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,459,822 issued Jul. 17, 1984 discloses a cooling suit comprising a cooling media flow conduit for circulating a cooling media. A heat exchanger associated with the suit includes an insert connected to a heat exchanger. The insert is filled with ice. Liquid cooled by the ice is circulated by a pump.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,146,757 issued Sep. 15, 1992 discloses a helmet cooling system utilizing a coolant-filled receptacle through which air flows. Forced airflow results from the sheer velocity of the racecar. Air ducted from the receptacle to the interior of the helmet provides cooling. A flexible conduit transmits melted coolant to a mouthpiece within the helmet for refreshing the helmet wearer.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,539,934 issued Jul. 30, 1996 discloses a protective helmet cooled by an auxiliary bladder filled with a breakable pouch of encapsulated ammonium salt surrounded by water. A chamber in the bladder allows free communication of the cooling medium within the chamber to allow for different heat loads at different areas of the bladder.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,715,309 issued Apr. 6, 2004, which is related to U.S. Pat. Application No. 2004/0074250 published Apr. 22, 2004, discloses a cooling apparatus with an insulated tank defining a refrigerant chamber. A circulation system circulates air to be cooled by the refrigerant chamber to a discharge unit. The circulation system comprises first and second tube coils, a pump, and hoses for conveying coolant from the first tube coil to the second tube coil and back to the pump. The unit can be harnessed to a user as a backpack and the discharge unit can be a helmet worn by the user. The refrigerant supplied to the refrigerant chamber can be ice and the coolant flowing through the closed circulation system can be water.
U.S. Pat. Application No. 20070044503 published Mar. 1, 2007 discloses a multifunction cooler that functions as a portable refrigeration device, a personal air conditioner, or a portable air inflation device. The cooler incorporates an air injection port that permits external warm air to be forced through ice or other coolant material inside the cooler. The air injection is facilitated by an electric fan which vents air from within the coldest portions of the interior of the cooler to an exhaust port which may be used as a source of air conditioning.
U.S. Pat. Application No. 2008/0155991 published Jul. 3, 2008 discloses a cooled helmet comprising a shell and a cooling module. The cooling module includes a thermoelectric cooler. A heat pipe embedded in the shell comprises an evaporating section and a condensing section. The thermoelectric cooler includes a cold end brought into contact with the condensing section of the heat pipe, a hot end exposed to the exterior of the shell, and an array of semiconductor elements sandwiched between the cold end and the hot end. The film type solar cell supplies electric energy to the thermoelectric cooler.
U.S. Pat. Application No. 2008/0302119 published Dec. 11, 2008 discloses a system for refrigerating air flowing into a race car and delivering it to the driver seat, the helmet or driver's suit, and/or other locations within the cockpit. An insulated coolant container with inflow and outflow ports connected to a delivery conduit receives fresh air from the vehicle's air intake system and directs it through a conduit system, such as coiled cooper tubing surrounded by dry ice, thus refrigerating the air.
Since on-board power sources are unavailable as a practical matter on modern racecars, viable coolers must have an adequate self-contained power supply. More particularly, a “quick-change” coolant storage arrangement is needed to minimize the complexity and time commitment needed for maintenance. Of course, care must be taken to maximize safety, as well as reliability.